Reviews

That Thing about Bollywood by Supriya Kelkar

sbsterling's review

3.0

Far too long but a great and worthwhile message.

yapha's review

4.0

Sonali loves Bollywood movies. In fact, Sunday night is her favorite night of the week as she, her parents, and her younger brother watch a movie together. But that doesn't mean she actually wants to live in one! Unfortunately, that seems to be exactly what has happened. After receiving some upsetting news about her parents, Sonali's entire world has shifted into a Bollywood movie complete with bright colors, dancing, and songs about feelings. Which is the worst for Sonali since she hates talking about her feelings. All of a sudden she is telling her parents and her best friend how she really feels, all while singing and dancing. No one else around her remembers the world in any other way. Can Sonali figure out how to get things back to normal? Or will she be living in a Bollywood movie forever? Highly recommended for grades 4 & up. Some familiarity with Bollywood movies would help appreciate the book more.

eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss

antoinettepowb's review

4.0

What a cute story about embracing and expressing feelings! So many readers will benefit from reading about Sonali struggle with grief, her parent's separation, fighting with her best friend Zara, all the while trying to figure out why her life was being turned into a Bollywood movie. I enjoyed all the descriptions about Bollywood movies, from the music, fashion, dancing and settings. The world that Sonali is thrust into from what she calls filmi magic is all about expressing feelings and she's only used to covering hers up. I think using the filmi magic every time she tries to suppress emotions was a great way to show the what can happen if emotions are bottled up and not talked about, the world around you becomes harder to navigate. This would be an excellent addition to any upper elementary grade and middle school classroom library!
Thanks NetGalley!

lisamcdreads's review

4.0

That Thing About Bollywood by Supriya Kelkar was a light-hearted fun glimpse into the Indian Bollywood culture and I enjoyed reading it. Sonali, the main character, from a young age learned to suppress her emotions. When her parent's fighting becomes so intense and they announce their separation, Sonali wakes up to find that life has taken on a Bollywood film style, with personal musical soundtracks, excessive drama and spur of the moment singing and dancing. Yet all her friends and family view this as perfectly normal. The more Sonali attempts to control her emotions, the more the magic of Bollywood takes over her life. I liked imagining this as a movie--the costumes, dance numbers, and musical numbers--right up my alley! I think a lot of the kid readers will relate to the fighting and separation of the parents, the desire to keep it a secret, and the problems that can cause in a multitude of relationships. Overall, this was a fun, engaging read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for this eARC.

jbrooxd's review

4.0

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

4 stars = Great! Might re-read.

This is a fun, magical story along the lines of a Groundhog Day or Freaky Friday where the main character finds herself in an alternate world where she has to figure something out in order to set things right. I enjoyed the Bollywood twist. I've not watched any Bollywood, but that didn't keep me from enjoying the story.

As an adult, it was easy to see the solution to the problem, but I love the message for kids here about emotional health. This could be a fun read-aloud or discussion group choice. Kids who enjoy Bollywood movies, musical theater, and drama might get a kick out of this story. But the central issues - hiding or expressing emotions, family conflict, divorce, grief/loss - can connect with any reader.

faerietears's review

3.0

FIRST OF ALL... how adorable is this cover??? Okay. Moving on.

I LOVED the beginning of this book. Sonali and her family were well developed, I understood her feelings (even as she hid them from everyone including herself.) The writing was well done. But...

Around 30% in, something snapped and suddenly Sonali’s world began turning Bollywood. From the book blurb this sounded fabulous, but in actuality it didn’t work for me. There seemed to be no rules to this “filmi magic” that was taking over her life, and that bothered me. Not to mention it just dragged on and on. I should’ve finished this in a week or two tops, but it was difficult to even read one chapter at a time. It took a month.

In the end, there was a good lesson about not bottling up your feelings, but it just took way too long to get there and I think I would’ve enjoyed this more as a straight up contemporary novel vs... whatever this was.

Hopefully the target audience is more accepting than I am, because the beginning and and were enjoyable and like I said, there’s a good lesson.

* Ebook courtesy of NetGalley

s_o_f_i_a's review

2.0

*1.5

It was a good idea, but it wasn't executed well. I got bored about halfway through the book.


TW/CW
~Mention of divorce
~Separation
~Mention of cancer

gallagirlreads's review

funny lighthearted sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

katherinevarga's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What a delightful read!! Literally had me LOL'ing and made me want to watch more Bollywood.

Would definitely recommend for fans of Bollywood and/or cheesy middle grade.  For adult readers, it's very clear from the first chapter exactly what Saniya needs to do to grow as a character, and her voice is very sophisticated for an 11-year-old. I could see some older readers feeling frustrated with that, but for me, all the silly Bollywood tropes very much made up for how predictable / unrealistic it was.

kristine2467's review against another edition

4.0

I was drawn to the book by the premise and the cover. Dad played the tough guy foil, and Mom had the emotional intelligence. They were fighting all the time, so they decide to separate. The book centers on Sonali, who gets sucked into a Bollywood movie with their decision, learning that she can “turn it off” by suppressing her feelings. As her parents continue the fighting and decide to separate, she realizes she can never turn the Bollywooditis off until she opens up. Some parts were choppy, but overall it was a good story about opening up and sharing what’s going on.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC.